Hey all! I've been doing lots of reading lately and I found this little gem in the introduction of a book I've just begun to read called Transmission of Light: Zen in the Art of Enlightenment. I thought this excerpt was relevant to our interests in the exploration of consciousness and the often brought up topic of "insta-enlightenment" and the importance of integration. This is just from the introduction and not from the actual text (which is undated but as I understand is a Zen classic).
A bit of context for you--the introduction is describing the earth-shattering experience of satori, which is said to be the bridge to enlightenment. Without getting into the specifics, satori is essentially a peak experience--where one transcends the bodily self/ego and recognizes reality and the nature of consciousness for exactly what it is. Here they are describing the pitfalls of satori, and how it is not the end of the Zen journey but merely the beginning.
Quote:A later Zen mater notes that immature satori can itself be made an object of attachment (one of the notorious dangers of cultic emphasis on peak experience and celebration of its attainment), a process which then blocks the aspirant from deeper realization: "Lesser enlightenment after all turns out to be a hindrance to greater enlightenment. If you give up lesser enlightenments and don't cling to them, greather enlightenment with surely be realized. If you grasp little enlightenment and don't relinquish it, great enlightenment will surely be ignored. This is like someone so greedy for a little profit that he doesn't get a big profit. If he doesn't cling greedily to a little profit, great profit will eventually be realized; if he accumulates small profits, eventually it will amount to great profit."
When stress is placed on Satori (and stress is the word) to the extent that seekers lose sight of these traditional caveats, it also may happen that extreme methods acting upon eagerly unprepared minds result in exhaustion, nervous breakdown, or even derangement...
That last little ditty stuck with me, as it seems we see this all too often in psychedelic culture. There's all sorts of extensive proverbs and saying demonstrating this point further, but I think you guys get it.
Anyways thought I'd share, see what you all think and perhaps start an interesting dialogue regarding integration and harm reduction.
"Consciousness grows in spirals." --George L. Jackson
If you can just get your mind together, then come across to me. We'll hold hands and then we'll watch the sunrise from the bottom of the sea...
But first, are you experienced?